When they were outside Lauren asked, “Want to come over and have a coffee?”
“Thanks, but I’m going home.”
Lauren looked intently at Jade. “Are you okay?”
Jade’s smile felt stiff on her face, but she hoped she didn’t alert her friend to how she was really feeling. “I’m tired, that’s all. I need to sleep.”
“It has been a long night. I might join Ryan for a nap too.” Lauren gave Jade a quick hug. “I’ll call you later.”
* * * *
Over the weekend, Nate Facetimed his band and they made plans for the next leg of the tour and went over the new songs they wanted to include on the album. He didn’t know how much longer he could stay in Brimland Point. Mike was eager to get the new tracks recorded and ready to go. And more than once told him he should be back already.
The band had played a few smaller shows again with Jimmy singing lead vocals. And word was getting around that Nathan Harvey had left the band. He’d done three phone interviews explaining he hadn’t left and was working on new material for the tour. Questions regarding Jade was the number one topic, but Nate shut them down before they could go any further. If they wanted an interview with him, they had to leave her out of it.
He’d gone two days without seeing her, and it had been the longest days of his life. Who knew he’d look forward to seeing her bubbly personality, her vibrant smile, and her bright, curly hair every day?
She’d gotten under his skin, worked her way into his—no, he wouldn’t say heart. But she’d made an impact in his life. Well, his life in Brimland Point. When he left, it would be the end. Maybe it was for the best they spent some time apart. Better to not get too attached. It would only make leaving harder. His gut clenched. It might already be too late.
* * * *
Monday afternoon Nate tuned some instruments in the hall, getting them ready for class. After Toby had asked Jade to take time off, Nate had assumed the lessons would be over too. But Toby wanted them to continue; the kids were enjoying them.
Nate actually looked forward to the classes too. He loved seeing their smiling faces when they learned a new chord or verse of a song. They concentrated so hard, pushed through the frustration of when it didn’t work out, until they played awesome music. Who knew teaching kids could be so fun and rewarding? The only thing missing was Jade. It wouldn’t be the same without her.
As he finished getting the equipment ready, the kids walked into the hall in single file. They didn’t run in like wild animals to grab the instrument of their choice as they normally did. No one made a sound. Nate frowned. Something wasn’t right.
A stern-looking woman in her sixties followed them. Her hair was pulled back in a severe bun, and she wore a black blouse buttoned to her neck with a frilly, white collar. A heavy burgundy skirt passed her knees, revealing thick, gray pantyhose. This woman looked like a scary nanny. Something straight out of the movies.
When the kids made a slight noise, she clapped her hands loudly. “Children, the next person to make a sound will sit out of the class.” She peered at every child with pursed lips. When no one moved, just stared wide-eyed at the teacher, she said, “Now sit down quietly and wait for instructions from Mr. Miller.”
Holy crap, not only were the kids scared, he was shaking a little in his boots too.
“Mr. Miller, I’m Mrs. Rich. I’ll be supervising the lessons while Ms. Brennan is away.” Without waiting for any kind of reply, she pulled a chair in front of the kids and gave them another warning glare.
Why the hell did Toby ask this horrible woman to supervise a class that was meant to be fun? Nate hoped she didn’t suck the joy out of it. With no other choice, he started the lesson.
After only ten minutes, Nate knew this would be a disaster. Mrs. Rich already had Lachlan sitting in a corner because he played a few notes more than the rest of the class after the song ended, which she considered noise. And Suzie’s lips trembled when Mrs. Rich told her that her guitar skills needed big improvement.
This would be the longest hour of his life.
* * * *
Jade stood at the entrance of the hall and stared at the somber-looking class. She’d stopped by the school to drop off work for the substitute teacher when she heard the music coming from the hall. When she entered, instead of the happy, noisy music that normally filled the room, a depressing atmosphere was in its place. A lot like Jade’s mood.
She’d been asked to stop teaching, but the music lessons, which she fought for, were still running. Sure, she was happy the kids still had them, but while her life was falling apart, everyone else’s kept moving on. Even Nate’s.
She turned to leave but Lachlan, who sat on the floor not taking part in the lesson, spotted her.
“Ms Brennan!” he squealed, got up, bolted for her, and wrapped skinny, little arms around her waist.
When the other kids saw what was happening, they too called out her name, dropped their instruments, and surrounded her.
“Children. Enough!” Mrs. Rich—aka Mrs. Witch, what Jade and some of the other staff liked to call her—clapped her hands and yelled, “Come here at once.” She pointed at the floor near her feet like she was calling a dog to come and sit.
The children dropped their heads and dragged their feet to her.
“That kind of behavior is unacceptable. Your lesson is over. Line up in single file and leave the hall. You can wait for your parents outside. If I hear a peep out of anyone, you’ll have lunch time detention tomorrow. Is that clear?”
